The Backpack Scholarship Portal makes it easy for scholarship providers, foundations, employers, and organizations to send scholarship payments directly to universities. No paper checks, no lost mail, no reconciliation headaches. Submit one scholarship, many scholarships, or a bulk roster, and pay the way that works best for your finance team.
Before You Start
You'll need:
The name of the university the scholarship is going to
The student's full name and student ID (email optional)
The scholarship amount and the term it applies to (Fall, Spring, or Summer)
Optional: a PDF copy of the award letter
Payment details, or the ability to forward a payment link to whoever handles payments on your team
If your accounting, finance, or business office handles the actual payment, skip ahead to Payment Options below. You can complete the submission yourself and have your finance team pay separately using a payment link or manual ACH transfer.
Step-by-Step: How to Submit a Scholarship
1. Start at the Scholarship Portal
Visit the Backpack universities page: https://www.backpackpay.com/universities
Select the university the scholarship is for
Click "Outside Scholarship"
Select "Provider" as your role
2. Choose How You Want to Submit
Backpack supports three submission types. Pick the one that matches what you're paying:
Single scholarship — one award for one student
Multiple scholarships — several students under one combined payment
Bulk CSV upload — a roster of scholarships uploaded from a spreadsheet
The next steps depend on which option you choose. Jump to the section that fits.
Option A: Submit a Single Scholarship
Step 1. Scholarship Details
Enter:
Scholarship name (the name of the award being given)
Scholarship amount
Term the scholarship should be applied to (Fall, Spring, or Summer)
Optional: upload a PDF award letter
Step 2. Student Details
Enter:
Student first name
Student last name
Student ID (required so the university can apply the payment to the correct account)
Student email (optional, but recommended; this enables the student to receive notifications about the scholarship)
Step 3. Provider Information
Enter your organization details so the confirmation, receipt, and (if applicable) payment link go to the right person:
Organization name
Contact name
Email
Phone number
Step 4. Payment
Select one of the three payment options (see Payment Options below), review your submission, and submit.
Option B: Submit Multiple Scholarships in One Payment
If you're paying for several students at once and want to send a single combined payment, choose Multiple Scholarships at the start.
The flow is similar to a single submission, with two differences:
You'll be asked to add student details for each recipient (name, student ID, optional email, scholarship amount, term)
You'll enter provider information only once for the whole batch
One combined payment covers all scholarships at submission
This is the right option when your organization is funding multiple awards going to the same university in the same term and you don't want to process several separate payments.
What if students are at different universities?
The portal is per-university, so you'll need to submit one batch per university. If you fund students across many schools, the bulk CSV upload (Option C) is usually easier.
Option C: Bulk CSV Upload
The bulk upload is the fastest path when you're sending scholarships for many students.
Step 1. Download the CSV Template
From the bulk upload screen, download Backpack's CSV template. Use this template exactly so the import works on the first try.
Step 2. Fill in the CSV
A few rules to keep the upload clean:
Term must be exactly
Fall,Spring, orSummer. No abbreviations (F25,Sp), no years appended (Fall 2025), no other variations. The portal uses this value to match the university's term, and anything else will cause errors.One row per student
Student ID is required for each row
Amounts in dollars (no currency symbols)
Step 3. Upload and Review
Upload the CSV. The portal will show you a review screen so you can confirm everything looks correct before submitting. Fix any flagged rows directly in the portal or re-upload a corrected file.
Step 4. Optional Award Letter
You can attach a single PDF award letter that applies to the batch if you have one (for example, a generic award notice for all recipients).
Step 5. Provider Information
Enter your organization's contact details once for the entire batch.
Step 6. Payment
Pay using any of the three payment options (see below).
Payment Options
Backpack offers three ways to pay, no matter which submission type you choose. Pick whichever works best for how your team handles payments.
1. Pay Now
Enter your bank account and routing number to pay immediately during checkout. The submission and payment are completed in one step.
Best for: smaller organizations or individual providers who can authorize payment in the same session they're submitting the scholarship.
2. Send a Payment Link
Backpack emails a secure payment link to your provider contact. Your finance team can open the link, enter banking details, and complete the payment on their own schedule. They don't need to log into anything or navigate the portal.
Best for: organizations where the person submitting the scholarship is different from the person who pays. Common scenarios: a program manager submits, the finance team pays.
3. Manual ACH
Backpack provides your organization with our banking details so your finance team can initiate a direct ACH transfer through your bank or accounting system. Because these details are shared securely, the option isn't self-serve in the portal. Contact Backpack Support to request manual ACH details and we'll send them to you securely.
Best for: larger organizations where ACH transfers go through an internal accounts payable workflow, or where your bank or ERP is the system of record for outgoing payments.
Tip: If your accounting department, finance team, or business office is the one that actually moves money, we recommend the Send a Payment Link or Manual ACH options. They let you complete the submission today without waiting for finance, and finance can complete payment without ever needing to touch the portal.
Confirmation and What Happens Next
After you submit:
You'll get a confirmation email with the details of the scholarship (or batch) you submitted
If you included a student email, the student will be notified that a scholarship has been submitted on their behalf
The university receives the scholarship details and will apply the funds to the student's account once payment is received
If you used a payment link or manual ACH, the scholarship moves from "submitted" to "paid" once Backpack receives the funds. You'll get a second confirmation when that happens.